Earthly cargo lofted to orbit on shuttle's final flight

It may be the shuttle's last mission, but it's certainly not the most glamorous. On Sunday, shuttle Atlantis docked with the International Space Station, carrying utilitarian items like a new tank for a urine recycling system.

The tank will hold toxic, concentrated waste brine from the space station's water recycling system, which extracts drinkable water from urine and other waste. Unlike the tank it is meant to replace, which is returned to the ground for disposal, the new one can be emptied into larger holding tanks on docked cargo ships for disposal in orbit.

The shuttle is also delivering an experiment that will test satellite refuelling technology for use by future robotic servicing missions.

Atlantis, which launched on 8 July, is scheduled to return to Earth for the last time on 21 July (the mission was extended by a day on Monday). For the next few years, NASA astronauts will have to hitch rides to orbit on Russian Soyuz spaceships.